Cashew culture: Seattle spots for vegan nuts

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Is it just us, or is the cashew having a moment? This week, we’ve spied the mild-flavored, kidney-shaped nut pop up in innovative ways at hot spots around Seattle.

First, at Anar, the new Middle Eastern juice bar and cafe, which opened last week in the South Lake Union’s Amazon Doppler Building. There, Mamnoon owners Wassef and Racha Haroun are offering cashew puree ($2) as one of three blend-ins (Ellenos yogurt, $3, and wheatgrass, $1, are the other options) for fresh-pressed juices ($7) tinged with mint, pomegranate molasses and orange blossom. As Wassef Haroun explains, they use raw pureed cashews as a blend-in because they are nutritious, don’t have an overpowering flavor, and add smoothness without the dairy. Not into juice? Try their version of the Turkish coffee with cardamom, date syrup, and hemp milk ($5).

Speaking of milk, over at Amandine in Capitol Hill, Sara Naftaly is making her own cashew milk so dairy-free folks can enjoy it swirled into an Empire Espresso latte ($4.50-$5.50). Just north, in Phinney Ridge, Chelsea Keene and Christopher Olson of soon-to-open Seattle Cookie Counter – yes, the vegan ice cream van is opening a brick-and-mortar across the street from Bluebird Ice Cream – promises the only vegan affogato in Seattle. They will also be the first Seattle cafe to use Duvall-based Anchorhead coffee. Until they open in March, Chelsea is perfecting her own homemade cashew milk. “I’m still working on the recipe, but I’m getting closer,” she told us during a recent taste test of creamy, vegan lemon ice cream (that is coconut milk based, not cashew milk based)

And, what hit our food department desk last week but a shipment of Seattle-based Fauxmage, a dairy free “cheese” made from cashews, fresh herbs, spices, and live cultures. The raw-vegan-Paleo-gluten free spread tastes more like a savory nut butter (think hummus) than cheese, but we appreciate creator Brooke Young’s handmade, small-batch, locally-sourced (spices come from World Spice Merchants right in Pike Place Market) product, and so does Food & Wine magazine, which recently featured them in a round up of vegan cheeses to try in 2016, as well as PCC, which just inked a deal with them. You can also find Fauxmage (best. name. ever) at Ken’s Market in Greenwood (a 6.5 ounce tub retails for $8.99). Fauxmage comes in four flavors – chipotle, herbs de provence, sun-dried tomato and basil, and rooster spice, a nod to Sriracha and Mama Lil’s peppers. The latter gives a grainy kick to crackers and also melts nicely in a batch of just-roasted cauliflower.

And finally, we’d be remiss if in a random, foodie-indulgent post on cashews we forgot to mention a recent alert from Trader Joe’s regarding a recall of their Raw Cashew Pieces (barcode number 00505154). According to a Jan. 15 announcement, there is a possibility that one specific lot with the code “BEST BEFORE 07.17.2016TF4” may be contaminated with salmonella. The product was distributed in Washington and out of caution Trader Joe’s has already removed all lots of Raw Cashew Pieces from store shelves. No illnesses have been reported but if you have any questions, call their customer relations at 626-599-3817.